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Smash Ace
- Joined
- Oct 6, 2014
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So in my latest overdue thread, I want to share a very powerful tool that WFT gets a lot of mileage out of. I've spoken about it before in MU discussions, but plan to go in depth here.
Pictured:Wii Fit Officelady OS in action
So first off, for those unfamiliar with the term -- An option select is a controller or button input that functions as multiple actions simultaneously letting the game engine decide the best maneuver for your given situation. Given your state in a game, you can only do certain things without transitioning to another state,and inputting an OS you can worry less about what your opponent can do and more about what you can do.
For those who are familiar, when you think about option selects you probably think of another character on the roster:
Pictured: Talk is 25¢ apparently
As an out of game example in SF4 Ryu was able to jump in with a hard kick on a downed opponent and input SRK or Tatsu near the ground. This OS allowed him to cover both the normal getup and the escape/reversal options of many characters.
Luckily option selects are available to the entire cast with a few notable aspects in favor for our favorite trainer. Interestingly enough we actually have both offensive and defensive based OSes so let's get right into it!
http://smashboards.com/threads/nutrition-and-supplements-the-wft-compendium-index-and-faq.377562/Frame data and shield insight are still readily available in the index for those that need it~
Frame Cancel Option Select
Nair > Jump + [x]
Ahh, our favorite aerial.The hitlag on this move is apparently strong enough that frame cancels happen occasionally even without trying for it. If you frame cancel you'll be in the air fast enough to follow up with any aerial or a footstool which can lead to death around 55%. It also combos into usmash but isn't worth the trade off in damage/kill potential without DB already loaded. If you miss the cancel your normal options are all available which is why going for crossups are always recommended on top of knowing your basic percent follow ups. As the landing lag on nair is low, buffering jump twice on hit is a good habit that'll let you take advantage of both scenarios.
Fair > [x] + Ftilt/Jab
Fair frame cancels are really really good. You can land pretty much anything and plenty of your options lead to kills or really strong setups. I personally recommend fsmash and dsmash as they are powerful(yay dsmash buff!) and both work as reaction options when you miss the cancel but get the trip(yay fsmash buff!). As fair also starts ground bouncing at higher percents fsmash becomes a superior option that works well whether you cancel or not. Lots of potential here. If you miss the cancel, fair on shield can cross up so that's always good, and on hit it will still combo into ftilt and jab.
Perfect Shield Option Select
Shield > Back + Attack
Probably my favorite among the option selects and the one that's kind of exclusive to Wii Fit. On powershield you'll get reverse ftilt to launch them into the air and on whiff you get retreating roll. Even if they're passing through your body the front part of ftilt will nail them. Very useful against approaching/spaced SH aerials.
Shield > Forward + Attack
This one is really good against chicken plays(one or both characters dashing in). On powershield if forward is held you get ftilt which is always good for punishing. Otherwise you'll get a crossup roll. Characters with bad neutrals and no projectiles will really dislike this one as fishing for grabs and dash attacks will turn into fishing for hard reads.
Shield + Down + Attack
Dtilt is likely another one of our underrated moves because it's flaws (frame 10 and doesn't have very good IASA) standout far more than it's pros, however 12% on a low hitbox move is nothing to sneeze at, especially when it's a guaranteed punish and not just a move you're throwing out. It's low KB angle is ideal for baits and can often setup into another OS trap. On whiff you get spotdodge which being frame 1 for WFT is pretty good for slowing down the pace of an aggressive opponent as they think of ways to deal with it. Obviously works anywhere you can shield and due to it's 10 frame startup can even work well against landing aerials. Very strong up close in boxing situations.
Shield + Up + Attack
Not sure how well this works with tap jump on, but at the very least the powershield will always give you utilt. Still a great move for traps, option selecting this from shield will give you grab on whiff and occasionally a dash grab from dashing shield. Particularly good against death from above approaches as utilts disjoint and low hurtbox make for a really good anti air even if a multihit attack hit your shield, without much worry of empty hop or late aerials.
Note: Tapping any of these directions instead of holding it will os jab instead of your tilt. Which can be very good if you're looking for a strong setup rather raw damage. Pressing shield at the same time as horizontal directions will give you grab and pivot grab as your alternate option, while pressing shield then vertical directions will give you a normal shield drop as your alternate. All useful in their own right, so keep them in mind!
Smashes
Smashes all work well in their respective directions too, but are much more committal, which in the case of Usmash and Dsmash, may not be worth risking due to usmash's tiny horizontal hitbox, and dsmash's 18 frame startup. Use them wisely.
Shield > Jump + Forward + Attack
WFT's fair honestly isn't very good for SH aerial spacing, but it does autocancel which if you're using shield offensively means you don't have to commit to a forward roll on whiff as you drift away. This os will most likely be reserved for platform stages as you cover the drop down aerial, the stay on platform, and the jump away.
Shield > Jump + Back + Attack
Because bair air has a horrible auto cancel and tons of lag, this can only be used with a full jump. Give you a reverse ftilt on powershield. May find more use with rtacc similar to how you'd bait attack on shield, but isn't likely to see much use.
Shield > Jump + Attack
I'm not really a fan of nairs that aren't fast fell, but there is some merit to it as it can crossup and still has enough height to bair. It can also combo into uair on hit for a decent combo so it's ok. PS gives you jab so it might be best to buffer two attacks unless you're planning on a jab 1 trap.
[shield+jump+ up + attack will always give you jump canceled usmash/utilt and uair in neutral is trash anyway so it's not worth it as as os. Shield + jump+ down+ attack will give you spotdodge/dtilt, no real purpose there in the jump input]
Shield > Jump > Grab+[Direction]
Another of my favorites as it's a really neat showcase of understanding the buffer system. This will give you jab on perfect shield or grab if, or the tilt corresponding to your direction and a short hop airdodge on whiff. Holding shield will give you your aerials instead of airdodges and grab instead of normals, which would be almost useless considering what aerials we have if not for dair which autocancels from shorthop making it a nice compliment to ps grab fishing. You can also hold grab on ps to ensure grab comes out while still option selecting to airdodges on whiff. When first playing with this you may find that you get grab on ps and aerials when not trying to. This happens because grab is essentially a combination of shield+attack, and as shield comes before attack in buffer priority, you will get grab if the second time you press it does link into your first shield press. Simplified you pressed grab for too long causing it to read as shield twice+attack. As SH airdodges are underused in general and we have a frame 1 air dodge this could become really useful.
[for those that don't know Smash 4 has a 10 frame buffer window that allows 1 input based on priority of special, shield, attack, jump]
Shield > Jump
The simplest of them all is more neutral than a defensive option select. As jump has the lowest priority in the buffer window, in order to ensure jump is selected in the 10 frames, it has to be either the only thing. That said, it's probably the safest way to use raw aerials for WFT. It also doubles as the input for charge canceling so it has at the very least some visible threat to it. Outside of that rtacc can makes this very good as you approach in reverse, or customs as you can use weighted header.
Shield > [special] > [direction]
Not much use in customs off, but both hoop hurricane and and jumbo hoops have some neat if gimmicky use. Breathings are better off not os'ed but they are there. Header should always be avoided as the hitlag on perfect shield can hit the ball as it generates ans Suns are also better off not used, but are there.
[missing a few I'm sure (crouch Oses aren't here for example) but I wanted to at least get the thread down while I remembered]
As a character with two central moves that cancel into shield, frame 1 air/spotdodges, a thin model, and lots of good options to select from, we've got a lot we can implement to make our game even better. Be sure to share if you find any more, or any situations that certain ones may be particularly strong or safe in.
Pictured:Wii Fit Officelady OS in action
For those who are familiar, when you think about option selects you probably think of another character on the roster:
Pictured: Talk is 25¢ apparently
Luckily option selects are available to the entire cast with a few notable aspects in favor for our favorite trainer. Interestingly enough we actually have both offensive and defensive based OSes so let's get right into it!
http://smashboards.com/threads/nutrition-and-supplements-the-wft-compendium-index-and-faq.377562/Frame data and shield insight are still readily available in the index for those that need it~
Frame Cancel Option Select
This is your offensive based option select. What happens here is that frame canceling causes an attack's landing lag to start counting down during the hitlag. This allows you to follow up very quickly with true combos or setups that would be impossible otherwise. However this requires that you both time the aerial correctly and that you land it on a non-shielding opponent which can be hard to react to. It's also very dangerous to expect to get the frame cancel and try a very unsafe follow up or miss out on a mixup opportunity expecting more. Luckily if you enter hitlag your buffered follow ups won't come out letting you pressure normally.
These option selects ensure you can get the optimal punish on a hit confirm without risking over commitment. There are likely many more, but considering what aerials we use consistently in neutral these are the ones I've found to be practical.
These option selects ensure you can get the optimal punish on a hit confirm without risking over commitment. There are likely many more, but considering what aerials we use consistently in neutral these are the ones I've found to be practical.
Nair > Jump + [x]
Ahh, our favorite aerial.The hitlag on this move is apparently strong enough that frame cancels happen occasionally even without trying for it. If you frame cancel you'll be in the air fast enough to follow up with any aerial or a footstool which can lead to death around 55%. It also combos into usmash but isn't worth the trade off in damage/kill potential without DB already loaded. If you miss the cancel your normal options are all available which is why going for crossups are always recommended on top of knowing your basic percent follow ups. As the landing lag on nair is low, buffering jump twice on hit is a good habit that'll let you take advantage of both scenarios.
Fair > [x] + Ftilt/Jab
Fair frame cancels are really really good. You can land pretty much anything and plenty of your options lead to kills or really strong setups. I personally recommend fsmash and dsmash as they are powerful(yay dsmash buff!) and both work as reaction options when you miss the cancel but get the trip(yay fsmash buff!). As fair also starts ground bouncing at higher percents fsmash becomes a superior option that works well whether you cancel or not. Lots of potential here. If you miss the cancel, fair on shield can cross up so that's always good, and on hit it will still combo into ftilt and jab.
Perfect Shield Option Select
This is your defensive based option select. What happens here is that you can cancel the 7 frames of shield drop from a perfect shield (while also not inuring any shield push) into anything you want. During a normal shield you are unable to use normals or specials, meaning once you enter shield your options from within it are limited to rolling, spotdodge, grab, and jump.
These option selects allow you to counter attacks on perfect shield while resorting to the out of shield action of your choice otherwise. Notably fantastic for WFT because of charge canceling into shield,the way her normals function and access to a really strong Rtacc. As shield comes out on frame 1 this can actually be used as a pseudo-approach.
Unlike offensive option selects, defensive option selects are generally susceptible to hard reads, so don't get predictable! Mix it up with honest play every once in a while and you'll create a style both baits and punishes in the same stroke.
These option selects allow you to counter attacks on perfect shield while resorting to the out of shield action of your choice otherwise. Notably fantastic for WFT because of charge canceling into shield,the way her normals function and access to a really strong Rtacc. As shield comes out on frame 1 this can actually be used as a pseudo-approach.
Unlike offensive option selects, defensive option selects are generally susceptible to hard reads, so don't get predictable! Mix it up with honest play every once in a while and you'll create a style both baits and punishes in the same stroke.
Shield > Back + Attack
Probably my favorite among the option selects and the one that's kind of exclusive to Wii Fit. On powershield you'll get reverse ftilt to launch them into the air and on whiff you get retreating roll. Even if they're passing through your body the front part of ftilt will nail them. Very useful against approaching/spaced SH aerials.
Shield > Forward + Attack
This one is really good against chicken plays(one or both characters dashing in). On powershield if forward is held you get ftilt which is always good for punishing. Otherwise you'll get a crossup roll. Characters with bad neutrals and no projectiles will really dislike this one as fishing for grabs and dash attacks will turn into fishing for hard reads.
Shield + Down + Attack
Dtilt is likely another one of our underrated moves because it's flaws (frame 10 and doesn't have very good IASA) standout far more than it's pros, however 12% on a low hitbox move is nothing to sneeze at, especially when it's a guaranteed punish and not just a move you're throwing out. It's low KB angle is ideal for baits and can often setup into another OS trap. On whiff you get spotdodge which being frame 1 for WFT is pretty good for slowing down the pace of an aggressive opponent as they think of ways to deal with it. Obviously works anywhere you can shield and due to it's 10 frame startup can even work well against landing aerials. Very strong up close in boxing situations.
Shield + Up + Attack
Not sure how well this works with tap jump on, but at the very least the powershield will always give you utilt. Still a great move for traps, option selecting this from shield will give you grab on whiff and occasionally a dash grab from dashing shield. Particularly good against death from above approaches as utilts disjoint and low hurtbox make for a really good anti air even if a multihit attack hit your shield, without much worry of empty hop or late aerials.
Note: Tapping any of these directions instead of holding it will os jab instead of your tilt. Which can be very good if you're looking for a strong setup rather raw damage. Pressing shield at the same time as horizontal directions will give you grab and pivot grab as your alternate option, while pressing shield then vertical directions will give you a normal shield drop as your alternate. All useful in their own right, so keep them in mind!
Smashes
Smashes all work well in their respective directions too, but are much more committal, which in the case of Usmash and Dsmash, may not be worth risking due to usmash's tiny horizontal hitbox, and dsmash's 18 frame startup. Use them wisely.
Shield > Jump + Forward + Attack
WFT's fair honestly isn't very good for SH aerial spacing, but it does autocancel which if you're using shield offensively means you don't have to commit to a forward roll on whiff as you drift away. This os will most likely be reserved for platform stages as you cover the drop down aerial, the stay on platform, and the jump away.
Shield > Jump + Back + Attack
Because bair air has a horrible auto cancel and tons of lag, this can only be used with a full jump. Give you a reverse ftilt on powershield. May find more use with rtacc similar to how you'd bait attack on shield, but isn't likely to see much use.
Shield > Jump + Attack
I'm not really a fan of nairs that aren't fast fell, but there is some merit to it as it can crossup and still has enough height to bair. It can also combo into uair on hit for a decent combo so it's ok. PS gives you jab so it might be best to buffer two attacks unless you're planning on a jab 1 trap.
[shield+jump+ up + attack will always give you jump canceled usmash/utilt and uair in neutral is trash anyway so it's not worth it as as os. Shield + jump+ down+ attack will give you spotdodge/dtilt, no real purpose there in the jump input]
Shield > Jump > Grab+[Direction]
Another of my favorites as it's a really neat showcase of understanding the buffer system. This will give you jab on perfect shield or grab if, or the tilt corresponding to your direction and a short hop airdodge on whiff. Holding shield will give you your aerials instead of airdodges and grab instead of normals, which would be almost useless considering what aerials we have if not for dair which autocancels from shorthop making it a nice compliment to ps grab fishing. You can also hold grab on ps to ensure grab comes out while still option selecting to airdodges on whiff. When first playing with this you may find that you get grab on ps and aerials when not trying to. This happens because grab is essentially a combination of shield+attack, and as shield comes before attack in buffer priority, you will get grab if the second time you press it does link into your first shield press. Simplified you pressed grab for too long causing it to read as shield twice+attack. As SH airdodges are underused in general and we have a frame 1 air dodge this could become really useful.
[for those that don't know Smash 4 has a 10 frame buffer window that allows 1 input based on priority of special, shield, attack, jump]
Shield > Jump
The simplest of them all is more neutral than a defensive option select. As jump has the lowest priority in the buffer window, in order to ensure jump is selected in the 10 frames, it has to be either the only thing. That said, it's probably the safest way to use raw aerials for WFT. It also doubles as the input for charge canceling so it has at the very least some visible threat to it. Outside of that rtacc can makes this very good as you approach in reverse, or customs as you can use weighted header.
Shield > [special] > [direction]
Not much use in customs off, but both hoop hurricane and and jumbo hoops have some neat if gimmicky use. Breathings are better off not os'ed but they are there. Header should always be avoided as the hitlag on perfect shield can hit the ball as it generates ans Suns are also better off not used, but are there.
[missing a few I'm sure (crouch Oses aren't here for example) but I wanted to at least get the thread down while I remembered]
As a character with two central moves that cancel into shield, frame 1 air/spotdodges, a thin model, and lots of good options to select from, we've got a lot we can implement to make our game even better. Be sure to share if you find any more, or any situations that certain ones may be particularly strong or safe in.